Aurum and the Augur
by AgentOfAngst
Summary: Reyna learns there's more to Octavian than meets the eye when her dog falls head over heels for him.


**I've always wanted some sort of friendship between Octavian and Reyna and I think that this is a good place to start. It's an interesting concept at least, and I wrote it a while back and just now got it typed up.**

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"Do you want a hot chocolate?" The voice shook her from her stupor. She wasn't asleep, per se, but Aurum was asleep in her lap and her legs were asleep under him. She looked up and inwardly sigh.

"What are you talking about?" She would have not been entirely displeased to see anyone in the entire camp- except him. People predictably didn't like him. Maybe it was his occupation or maybe it was his eyes. Maybe it was just that he wanted power and not even for normal bad guy reasons, but for something sad and nearly poetic that no one wanted to associate with the unlikeable Octavian Alexander.

"What did I say? Do you want a hot chocolate?" She was furious. Argum began to bark. Argum was no traitor. Not like Aurum, who woke up and leaped out of her lap and went up to Octavian. Aurum didn't like people. Never had. She liked her dogs mainly because they kept most people at bay. The wrong people. The ones who were nuisances. Except him. Aurum had an inexplicable love of the boy. The tall, sloppy haired freak who no one but a dog could love. But why her dog?

"You're not getting another aspirin, Octavian." He snorted, running a hand over Aurum, now equally frustrated.

"I don't want an aspirin. I want a coffee. Do you, or do you not want a hot chocolate, since I'll be at the cafe?"

"No," He let out an aggravated exhale.

"For goodness sakes Reyna, I'm not trying to pull anything, I just wanted to be nice." He said the word nice with such angry vehemence that she actually almost believed that he meant it. Or he wouldn't have gotten quite so upset. She studied her little bowl of jelly beans and called Aurum to her, who whined like a puppy, never content. Somewhere in the silence, he had left the praetorium, and she was happy.

Reyna absolutely infuriated him. He had never been rude to her without being provoked, and he was absolutely in love with that gold mutt. He wanted a dog of his own but that wasn't likely to happen. People wouldn't let a boy who cut open stuffed animals handle real ones. Thought that he'd sacrifice something more alive, but he'd never hurt an animal. Anyways, human blood was the best for sacrifice, and his own worked just fine.

He ordered a coffee, black. Let the steam heat up his face. For a second he was going to walk away, but change jingled in his pocket and he sighed.

"One hot chocolate please." He paid for that as well and downed his coffee in three scalding sips. The best things burned on the way down. Then he considered the hot chocolate. He hated hot chocolate. Too sweet, and he'd never liked that type of sweet. He barely drank soda, if he wanted something sweet he wanted it to fill him up. Reyna loved the stuff, though. He looked around. A first cohort lackey sat a few feet away. That would be a wonderful, innocent way to get Reyna her hot chocolate since he'd already wasted money on it. The first cohort primarily did what he said, and only disrespected him behind his back. But at the last second, he again changed his mind. He'd do it himself.

He marched right into the praetorium, where Reyna was chatting with that awful Jason Grace. Why was he awful? Because he was one of the whisperers. One of the stare-and-pointers and rumor starters. He and Dakota had always acted like Octavian was poison. Octavian ignored Jason and marched up to her, handing the drink out and looking away.

"Look just take it. They messed up my order." After a moment she took the drink.

"Thank you, Augur." He turned to go Aurum whining after him.

"Augur, take Aurum for a walk." She said it as if she was commanding. As if it was a chore, rather than, as they both knew, a reward.

"Yes, Praetor. Come on, Aurum, you want to go on a walk?" The dog went insane with happy barks.

"Bring him back in an hour, or two." She said, and inwardly Octavian grinned.

"Of course, praetor. Come on, buddy." And he and the dog took off.

She trusted him, nearly, with her dog. The gesture had been sweet, the hot chocolate clearly not a result of a messed up order. The Augur was surprising.

The Augur had surprised himself. Reyna hadn't deserved the hot chocolate. But he hadn't been looking for recognition. She had given him something better though. A friend. An anchor. He rubbed Aurum's shiny head.

"Who's a good boy?" You are, you are." Yes, he talked to the dog. At first, they just walked around. Then he took Aurum to Jupiter's temple.

"This is my favorite place at camp, but I used to hate it. Up here, they rarely bother me, and I got used to the thunder. Up here I don't just read piles of fluff. I feel like I can see my future. Maybe one day I'll lead an army and serve as praetor, but beyond that, I think… I think that one day I'll just be free of this place. Free of my mother's expectations and people looking at me like I'm a monster." Aurum just listened and rested his head on Octavian's lap.

When he brought the dog back to Reyna, he stood a little taller. His shoulders didn't droop as if he carried the weight of the world. But the thing the praetor noticed most about him was his eyes, intense as usual, but no longer terrifying. She stared into them for a few seconds longer than she meant to. Then both turned away, and it was gone.


End file.
